Kirsten Storms has been absent from “General Hospital” for most of the last year. She briefly returned in February 2026 after taking some time off during her move from Los Angeles to Nashville. But in June, she announced that she isn’t ready to return to “General Hospital” yet.
The personal situations she’s dealing with are keeping her off social media as well as off “General Hospital.” Kirsten Storms hasn’t posted anything on social media for more than a month. On Sunday, July 19, she posted an update on her life, along with a new selfie and a new look on Instagram:
Kirsten Storms’ Bold New Look
Kirsten Storms has radically changed up her look. Her blonde hair is gone. She now has an edgy, short black cut with long bangs, which look great on her.
In her update, Storms said that she is still confident in her decision to move to Nashville last year. She also addressed an ongoing situation involving her ex-husband, Brandon Barash, writing:
“I will briefly acknowledge that there is an ongoing situation with Brandon that will be getting sorted out (soon hopefully). I would appreciate (and encourage) for people on here not to worry about me, or think there is something larger going on, other than 2 ex-spouses dealing with a ‘disagreement,’ that WILL be resolved.”
She also asked that people keep their comments positive, out of respect for the fact that her child is now old enough to Google her own name and could see the public comments.
Will Kirsten Storms Return To “General Hospital”?
Kirsten Storms has played Maxie Jones for more than two decades. But she has taken time off several times to deal with a serious health crisis and other issues.
When Kirsten moved to Nashville in August 2025, the writers created a storyline for Maxie in which she was poisoned by a Deception face cream and ended up in a coma.
She woke from her coma and was briefly reunited with her family and children early in 2026. Maxie then had to choose between rekindling a relationship with the man everyone thought was her husband, Nathan West, or staying with Spinelli. She chose Spinelli, which turned out to be a smart choice since “Nathan” was actually Cassius Faison.
Maxie has been mentioned in the months since, but she hasn’t been seen on camera. Her son, James, was a big part of the story involving “Nathan,” but Cody and Molly stepped into parental roles to protect James in Maxie’s absence.
Currently, the character Maxie Jones is on a family trip. The show has not recast Maxie, and there’s no indication right now that they plan to recast the character.
Kirsten’s Instagram post didn’t mention anything about returning to “General Hospital.” She did mention that, because of her health problems, she is very aware of how precious time is and indicated that she may be taking a step back from acting.
If she doesn’t want to return to “General Hospital” right now, hopefully she will want to come back someday. In the meantime, it’s good to see her looking strong, healthy and beautiful with her new look.
